Wireless mobile station loss prevention in multi-network communication systems

Abstract

Methods in communications devices and networks for reducing an infrastructure registration race condition. In one embodiment, a communications device transmits ( 310 ) a first network connection request is a first network, and after waiting a specified time interval, the communication device transmits ( 320 ) another network connection request to the first network. The communications device may determine the time interval, or it may be received ( 302 ) from the network. Alternatively, a time stamp or some other indicium is applied to the connection requests transmitted by the communications device so that a home location register or other entity may determine the order in which the requests were transmitted.

1. A method in a communications device, the method comprising:
 transmitting a first network connection request to a first network; 
 waiting for a specified time period to elapse after transmitting the first network connection request, 
 transmitting a second network connection request to a second network after waiting the specified time period, the second network connection request transmitted when the communication device is not connected to the first network. 
 
     
     
       2. The method of  claim 1 ,
 transmitting the first network connection request to an AMPS network, 
 transmitting the second network connection request to a CDMA network. 
 
     
     
       3. The method of  claim 1 , transmitting the second network connection request to the second network after waiting at least 3 seconds. 
     
     
       4. The method of  claim 1 ,
 detecting the second network after transmitting the first network connection request, 
 transmitting the second network connection request after detecting the second network. 
 
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 1 , waiting for a specified time period determined by the communication device. 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 1 , transmitting the second network connection request to the second network before receiving an acknowledgement in response to sending the first network connection request. 
     
     
       7. A method in a communications device, the method comprising:
 transmitting a first network connection request to a first network; 
 transmitting a second network connection request to the first network after a specified time interval occurring after transmitting the first network connection request to the first network. 
 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 7 , receiving a message from a network, the message containing delay information on which the specified time interval is based. 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 8 ,
 receiving a message from a network, the message containing delay information on which the specified time interval is based 
 where the delay information is dependent upon a network to which the communications device was most recently connected before transmitting the first network connection request to the first network. 
 
     
     
       10. The method of  claim 7 ,
 transmitting a network connection request to a different network before transmitting the first network connection request to the first network, 
 transmitting the second network connection request to the first network only if the communications device first transmits the network connection request to the different network within a specified time of the transmission of the first network connection request to the first network. 
 
     
     
       11. A method in a communications device, the method comprising:
 attempting to connect the communications device to a second network upon losing a connection to a first network; 
 transmitting a network communication request from the communications device to the first network if the attempt to connect to the second network fails. 
 
     
     
       12. The method of  claim 11 ,
 attempting to connect to the second network includes transmitting a network connection request to the second network, 
 failing to connect to the second network includes failing to receive a network connection acknowledgement within a specified time period in response to transmitting the network connection request.